Dial - A - Nail

Listen up girlies of Dubai.... if you like nothing more than a good pamper sesh than you absolutely MUST read on.. especially if you are anything like me then the discovery of this service will have you feeling rather pleased with yourself and in time rather thankful too.

Like most of you girlies, I love nothing more than to take a little ''me'' time and glam myself up... whether that be grooming eyebrows and eyelashes, polishing my nails or simply just enjoying a bit of down time.

Usually, I opt to do such pampering myself.. as well lets be honest... unless you are a celebrity or married to a millionaire... we can't afford to...or perhaps even warrant spending so much dosh on such a regular basis....

...and I must add.. that when it also comes to the salons of Dubai... I honestly just do not have the time! As if the extortionate prices (my hair usually costs the equivalent of £120 for a colour/blow dry and Gel/Acrylic nails average at about £55) weren't off putting enough... the lengthy time of over 3 hours to simply get  ''acrylics done'' will definitely make you think twice before booking in...

But don't you worry yourselves girlies, I have found the answer! Let me introduce you to ...

Dial - A - Nail

 I am not entirely sure if this is a new salon or if they have been around for a while... but anyway Dial-a- Nail have themselves two salons, one in Tecom and the other in Jumeirah Village.

But I don't care about that... and I am certainly not writing this post because of their salons.... nope... I am writing this post because Dial -a- Nail have introduced the genius idea of salon treatments in your own home!

'At home treatments' have been around since for ever back in the UK and so it is about time that Dubai clocked on to the potential that this niche market has to offer. Yes... I do realize that there are some 'private' beauticians/ hairdressers around Dubai that clearly do home visits... but unfortunately most of them are unqualified... or just darn right awful..


The beauty of Dial -a- Nail is that they are an established salon and so all their staff are fully qualified and you can trust them to be professional.

 .. O and FYI... they don't just stop at nail treatments either.....

 

What's more... is that the prices are actually cheaper than many other salons in Dubai!

I paid just 250 AED for my set of Gel nails from Dial-a-Nail...

My lovely nail technician, Rose, turned up at my door with her case of goodies, ready to get to work. We set it up in my lounge, and so I sat back on my couch.. poured some drinks.. even had a cheeky smoke... and I must admit... I had Miss Congeniality on the TV in the background. Therefore Rose and I shared in some small talk and then we watched my chick flick, while Rose catered to my nails... and by the end of the film... my nails were finished!

If you too are interested in booking with Dial-a-Nail, then simply click here for their website or you can call them on 04 453 4280

x o x o

Men. Sometimes a girl just needs one.

 

This ones for all the single ladies out there...   ''Men. Sometimes a girl just needs one.''

Honestly... being a single, self respecting woman now a days is just not as easy as it seems... and I am certainly being put to the test at the moment.

Admittedly... we have all had our ''casual'' flings and bit of  ''fun'' over the years....which is all fine and dandy...

....and then ''supposedly'' we all go on to meet the love of our lives and settle down, leaving our naughty single ways behind us.

But what happens to those of us who find ourselves single again after broken relationships... ? Do we take to our ''casual'' flings again? And if so, well... when does the ''fun'' become too much?

I am a little bit torn with this concept at the moment...

You see,  after being completely monogamous for 4 years... getting used to single life again definitely took some getting used to. Yes, I was the one who broke away, but I still needed my time...and so after an added good few months.. I was just coming round to the idea of being with other men again. Coincidentally this was about the time when I moved back to Dubai, last year in May 2012.

Needless to say... after emigrating to the warm temperatures of Dubai, moving into my own apartment and meeting lots of other singletons.... well... I was soon feeling very at ease with my new single life. In fact - I was darn right loving it.

However, as 2013 rolled in, I was ready for something more than just ''fun.''  I had enjoyed my ''single'' time.. and more importantly given myself time to be by myself and feel like ''me'' again. Therefore, I said goodbye to some gorgeous men in my life and promised myself no more ''casual'' flings or ''fun''' until I met someone who I actually had feelings for.. I wanted some romance again..

Problem with that great idea... is that... I currently find myself still single.... ultimately meaning that I have now been extremely well behaved for most of this year ...

And to top if off... these gorgeous men that I said goodbye to... are still trying to provoke me into some more single fun... which in all honesty has left me at the point of feeling that I cannot resist much longer....

In fact I haven't resisted. opps.

Actually, not ''opps''..... because I quite frankly do not feel bad about this in any way whatsoever! Basically... what happened is that after some rather unexpected but damn good bit of weekend fun... I have quickly been awoken to the realization that yes...I am single....I am 25 years old ......and  YES....of course I should be having fun...

 

.....Just everything has its boundaries!

I can still have my self respect, but there is absolutely no need for me to be acting like I am joining a nunnery while I am single.

So its got me thinking....

One of my good friends out here has a ''friend with benefits'' .... and rather superbly.... she has aptly named him....  ''Hero'' for reasons being obvious... he's the best sex that she has ever had....and therefore her ''Hero.''  (I know its brilliant.. it makes me laugh every time that she says ''I saw Hero last night'').  Anyhoo.... they have had the ''relationship'' talk and he doesn't want one. Yes, she would have liked more with him but she is perfectly fine with  them also just keeping things ''casual'' because she now knows where she stands with him and at the end of the day.. they are having an amazing time with each other.  In the mean time, she's not doing this with anyone else... but she is obviously single and still going on dates and when the time comes when she sees something happening romantically with another guy then of course she will stop her ''fun'' with ''Hero''.

Basically... the bonus of having a ''friend with benefits'' is of course.... you get your ''fun'' pretty much on call whenever you want it.

...BUT.... from a woman's point of view.... its more than that. We can, by all means go out to a bar and quite easily take someone home with us... however my problem with that... and most other self respecting women's problem with that is the sheer fact that as much as you may be wanting to fulfill certain needs..... at the end of the day doing this on a regular basis and ultimately sleeping with numerous strangers is just not respectful of ourselves. Yes, most people I know have had their random fun... as realistically ... we all have basic needs and wants and if your being safe then yes... the occasional wild night is nothing to be ashamed of in the great scheme of things....

HOWEVER... The truth of the matter is, that us ladies... see more sense in having one regular partner than a string of one night stands... and when we cant find that one regular partner in a committed relationship that we call our boyfriend... then yes...in simple terms...most of us single ladies do appreciate having a ''friend with benefits.''

So I guess I have come to the conclusion and what I am trying to say to all my single ladies is... stop worrying so much about having some ''fun'' and just do what sits right with you and your own self respect. At the end of the day,  what's wrong with two consenting adults getting it on? And when it is good.. then I really don't see the harm in that carrying on as long as you both know where your feelings lie.

So..be safe....and enjoy...

x o x o

Ramadan Kareem!

It is officially Ramadan in Dubai.... and so I thought I would not only write a post to say ''Ramadan Kareem'' to all my Muslim friends.. but to also educate my British friends on what this means for those of us in Dubai..

Ramadan:

• The word Ramadan comes from the Arabic root ramida or ar-ramda, which means scorching heat or dryness.
• Ramadan is the ninth month of the Islamic calendar
• The month lasts 29-30 days based on the visual sightings of the crescent moon
• Muslims worldwide observe this as a month of fasting
• Fasting is obligatory for adult Muslims, except those who are ill, travelling, pregnant, diabetic or going through menstrual bleeding
• While fasting from dawn to sunset, Muslims refrain from consuming food, drinking liquids, smoking, and engaging in sexual relations : some even refrain from swearing
• Ramadan typically includes the increased offering of prayers and recitation of the Quran

This is the basics of what Ramadan entails.... and I must say after experiencing 5 Ramadan's now...I have nothing but the upmost respect for Muslims.

Today for example is the first day of Ramadan and temperatures have been over 45 degrees all day..... at the moment there is a heat wave in the UK and most of my friends are already moaning about how hot they are in 26 degrees.... well imagine another 20 degrees and just think about how ridiculously boiling it is then....Now imagine not having anything to eat or drink.... not even a glass of water... not even a piece of chewing gum.... ALL day long... until sunset at about 7pm ish!

Could you do it? Not sure I could.... However....I am currently experiencing my first full day of no cigarettes in rather a long time! No - I am not Muslim, nor am I fasting. However, if you live in the UAE, then they do expect you to respect their rules and culture, which I think is more than fair. In fact, I actually think that it is a great shame that England doesn't hold the same rule for our country.... as in... if you want to live in our country then respect our culture...  and if you don't like it.. then go!

Anyway... because I am not Muslim, I do not need to fast but they do ask that we do not eat, drink, smoke etc in front of them and so no smoking it is for me until after sunset.... and eating is done behind closed doors (I know my British friends won't believe this LOL but it is true!) ...

But don't worry... I have also come to realize that there is also some rather good perks to Ramadan for us Brits.... see below :: (Muslims should finish reading this blog now) ::

• Its the one month of the year we actually save money! - although drinking is back on after sunset... most clubs and establishments with loud music are not... (something to do with no dancing etc during this respectful month) ...and so hence no expats take to the clubs... resulting in lots of money being saved from dwindling away on drinking.

• House parties ! For the same reasons as above... us expats end up throwing ''gatherings'' at our own places...where we can play whatever music we like.... and still party away. Being spoilt for choice by clubs in Dubai... we often overlook house parties... so Ramadan is my time to bring it back down to basics... love a good house party (just preferably not at mine... the cleaning after when hung-over is just too much! haha)

• Time to get healthy! Think about it.... we cant eat, drink or smoke outside in front of other people and vice versa.. until sunset. So we have a WHOLE day of basically not seeing other people scoffing their faces with sweet treats or dragging on a ciggie during their lunch breaks. If you ask me - this is the perfect time for dieting or trying to quit smoking. There is nothing worse than when your trying to quit something and all you see is everyone around you still doing it. Put it to the back of your mind and forget about it... which is exactly what I have done today with cigarettes... not thought about it!

• Shorter work days! Yes its true... with the rising temperatures and the majority of Dubai not eating or drinking all day... its only fair to let people get home as soon as possible. Staying later and driving on the roads causes many problems,  as people are dizzy and even at times fall as sleep from lack of energy.... resulting in a LOT of accidents.  With this in mind, most offices let people go home earlier at about 2/3PM each day depending on their policy. My office actually doesn't have any Muslims working for us (as of yet) and so none of us are fasting, however we are still able to finish work 2 hours earlier at 4pm.... just because its Ramadan !

• Iftar -  the evening meal when Muslims break their fast during the Islamic month of Ramadan. Therefore...every evening during the month of Ramadan we are spoilt for choice by restaurants offering Iftar.... this is a lovely experience. People are happy and celebrating and relaxed.... I find that Iftar always creates a sense of ''togetherness'' and with so many options available - the food is always good.

So there you have it... Ramadan explained - British style!

Ramadan Kareem to all my Muslim friends !

x o x o